Sharabani explained that the VFX team at The-Artery had a turnaround time of “less than three weeks” despite being tasked with designing a scene that would traditionally demand a lengthy preparation period:

“For ‘Midsommar’, it was a huge challenge to design and craft a CG treatment that would depict the physical devastation suffered by a pair of sacrificial offerings. We were brought on with a little less than three weeks before the theatrical release deadline. We created 30 complicated CG shots — skulls being smashed by sledgehammers, faces and limbs, torsos shattering against rocks after being thrown from cliffs above, and blood treatments. All amazingly complex treatments within an incredibly short window of time.”

Although the film’s production team was well aware that this task required more time, they had no choice but to reach out to The-Artery with “the release date looming,” which naturally meant an all-hands-on-deck approach until the project was wrapped up. While the VFX elements lent the scene its gut-wrenching aura and appeal, while introducing seamlessness between the CG and prosthetic aspects, the Ättestupa scene would have been impossible without Iván Pohárnok, the film’s prosthetic makeup designer, whose Hungary-based company Filmefex designed all the corpses featured throughout “Midsommar.” Filmefex has also designed corpses and human remains in films like “Blade Runner 2049” and 2006’s “Taxidermia,” with the latter being a startling, meaningful showcase of Pohárnok’s skilfully grotesque vision.

Pohárnok also spoke to Vulture about the nitty-gritty of the Ättestupa scene, while stating that he “instantly fell in love with” the “twisted, weird idea” that was Aster’s “Midsommar.”